Cleaner water is costing us plenty

Fort Lauderdale spending $768 million on upgrades

November 27, 2006|By Brittany Wallman Staff Writer

FORT LAUDERDALE — The city's most expensive public works project ever, WaterWorks 2011, is going to cost even more than imagined, driving up monthly utility bills for hundreds of thousands of residents.

What was unveiled in 2001 as a $555 million program is now estimated to cost $768 million because of the rising cost of construction materials, unexpected problems during construction, and inflation, according to memos from the city's public works director.

WaterWorks 2011 is expected to improve the quality of drinking water and the capacity of the drinking water system, city officials say. It also means upgrading and expanding the sewer system and eliminating the use of septic systems, which can allow harmful chemicals to leak into the environment. About 40 percent of the city was still on septic systems before the program began.

"You have to pay for progress," said Bill Nielsen, a landlord retired from the U.S. Navy, and president of the civic association in Sailboat Bend. The historic neighborhood still faces plenty of work -- at least three more months, according to the official schedule -- before its septic tanks are replaced with a sewer system.

Year to year, the small increases gain little attention. But in the past four years, the average monthly water-sewer bill has risen 19 percent, to $64.05, tacking $11 onto the monthly bill for 10,000 gallons, city records show. By the time the WaterWorks 2011 program ends, the average water-sewer charge will have risen more than 40 percent, to about $75.90 a month.

The rate increases of 3 percent a year will continue another 14 years, to 2020, public works director Albert Carbon said, to pay for WaterWorks and other utility improvements. By then, the average water-sewer charges would be up 67 percent, to at least $96 monthly.

On top of that, homeowners on septic systems are required to tie into the new sewer, paying a $1,000 connection fee and another $1,500 to $3,000 in private plumbing costs to abandon their septic systems. Then, until the year 2020, they'll pay a 10 percent sewer surcharge.

The city has large-user agreements with its customer cities, and is passing costs on to them as well, Carbon said.

The increases don't include a new and higher water rate the city approved earlier this year that will be imposed in times of water scarcity determined by the South Florida Water Management District.

The huge project, much larger than any in city history, was unveiled under former City Manager Floyd Johnson.

Now, halfway through the program, more work is under way than at any time during WaterWorks, according to the city's assistant utilities services director, Paul Bohlander. Nanette Woods at CH2Mhill, a Denver-based company overseeing WaterWorks, said there's $175 million in work under way, $113 million complete and millions more to go.

Tuesday, city commissioners approved another $13.2 million of work in Melrose Manors, Lake Ridge, River Oaks, Edgewood, the northeast and Davie Boulevard.

The work is seen as essential, but it has disrupted neighborhoods. Lauderdale Manors north of Sunrise Boulevard has been under construction for three years, partly because of problems with the original contractor, who was replaced. Davie Boulevard traffic is backed up, as lanes close for installation of a water main.

Many neighborhood roads are ripped up for more than a year, with detour signs and barricades marking many intersections, and heavy trucks and equipment blocking lanes.

Nielsen said modern sewers are the only way to ensure a successful toilet flush. Fort Lauderdale's heavy rainfalls and high water table cause problems for a septic tank's drain field.

The gravel roads left exposed after asphalt is removed for the work are treacherous to a car's alignment, but Nielsen sees something good in that.

"People shouldn't be doing over 20 mph on our roads anyway, even if they're paved," he said of Sailboat Bend. "So it works out, as a traffic calmer."

Brittany Wallman can be reached at bwallman@sun-sentinel.com or 954-356-4541.

WATERWORKS 2011

WHAT: A 10-year program to rid the city of septic systems, install modern sewers, improve drinking water and expand the capacity of the water-sewer system by 2011, when the city turns 100. Some of the work will go on until 2020.

MORE INFO: The call center for WaterWorks 2011 can be reached at 954-522-2604.

ONLINE: A project locator and detailed information are available online at www.waterworks2011.com